Virus Troubles
by Neko-Salosa
Summary: Lainet, Netto and Laika get infected with the Neko Virus and learn about each other on the ride back home after they capture it. [One Shot]


"Netto," Laika called out to his friend over the head phone system the boys had set up for missions.

"Yeah?" Netto asked.

"Where the hell are you?" Laika replied in a calm voice.

Netto looked around, "I am… in the basement where there are no signs of virus activity… at all," he added for good measure.

Laika sighed, "Okay then! So, we're called here, no one answers us when we get here, now there's no problem?" he asked.

Netto shrugged, "So it would seem. Hey, at least I missing my high school placement tests!" he said with a happy note in his voice.

Laika sighed into the ear piece and Netto heard it as a rush of static, nevertheless the action made him grin. "Is Laika tired?" he asked.

Laika growled, "Laika is running on five hours of sleep and two cups of coffee."

Netto laughed, "All righty then, let's fill out a report and get out of here," he said.

Laika nodded to no one in particular, "Fine with me," he muttered and cut off the transmission.

Netto laughed to himself as he wrote out a mission statement and sent it to Mejin. After that he straightened up and stretched his hands over his head. "Well, time to go," he said happily.

"And study," Rockman said.

"Yeah right," Netto smirked as he walked to the entrance of the basement.

Behind him there was a crackle of electricity as a monitor seemed to implode. "Rockman?" Netto asked slowly.

"Yes?" Rockman replied.

"Please tell me that wasn't a virus," Netto said

Rockman scanned the monitor and gulped, "Oh no…" he muttered.

"Oh no as in…" Netto said.

"Neko Virus…" Rockman replied.

"Oh no," Netto hissed and turned back on his earpiece. "Laika?" he called into it.

"Yes?" Laika asked.

"We've got… a slight problem," Netto said.

"Meaning…" Laika said.

"Meaning, the most annoying virus on the planet got loose and is about to infect our navis unless we do something in the next two minutes," Netto replied.

Laika muttered something in his native language that Netto could not decipher as the connection was cut off. Netto blinked and said, "That went better then I thought it would."

Rockman gave a short laugh and looked around, "And plans?" he asked.

Netto sighed, "I could turn off your PET," he said.

Rockman shook his head, "No, I'll get infected and we'll capture the virus. Better to get it over with here rather then let it spread."

"If you're sure…" Netto said doubtfully.

"Ready?" Rockman asked.

"Ready when you are," Netto replied and held up his PET. "Plug in, Rockman.EXE, transmission!" he yelled and a thin beam of red light announced Rockman's entrance into the net.

Rockman appeared next to Searchman who was looking around to see what was going on. "Well?" Searchman asked.

Rockman shrugged, "I have no idea," he admitted.

Before either navi could continue the odd conversation the Neko Virus made it's entrance and meowed loudly before pouncing on Rockman. Rockman yelled as the giant can pushed him to the ground and he winced as his files began to take in the virus code. Netto groaned and sent him a blizzard battle chip to make the cat go away.

"Are you all right?" Netto asked him.

Rockman rubbed the back of his head, "I'm fine…" he said slowly.

"Searchman…" Laika said slowly.

Netto looked at Searchman and tried not to laugh. "Ah… yeah…" he said slowly.

"Netto-kun!" Rockman yelled out as the cat came bounding back.

"Aqua tower, slot in!" Netto said and Rockman put his paw on the ground making the Neko Virus yowl in anger and disappear.

"Where'd it go?" Netto asked.

Rockman looked at his screen, "Odd… from this it says that the virus…" At that moment the Neko virus appeared in the real world.

Netto looked up at it and it looked down on him. "I forgot it could do that," he said to himself.

The Neko Virus put its ears back and hissed at him. "Does it remember me?" Netto asked Rockman quietly.

"So it would seem," Rockman answered.

Netto was forced to dive out of the way as the Neko Virus pounced at him.

"Mejin-san, dimensional area!" Laika called into his PET.

Mejin sighed and turned it on, they could never decide if a mission was over or not.

The DA came over them and Netto ran into the hallway that Laika was in. "Aren't you going to cross fuse?" Laika asked his friend.

Netto eyed him, "What are you nuts?"

"We can't get infected," Laika said.

"You really believe that?" Netto asked him.

Laika blinked then saw the virus headed down the hall, "Do you want to face that as a human?" he asked.

Netto whirled around and laughed nervously. "No," he admitted.

"Then cross fuse," Laika instructed.

Netto gulped and pulled out his syncro chip. "All right then," he said and slotted it in while Laika did likewise.

When the light diminished Netto knew something was wrong. He turned to Laika and almost burst out laughing. "Told you," he said with a smirk.

Laika was keeping his head cool and he pushed Netto out of the way as the cat came charging past them. "You look really weird," Netto told him.

Laika looked down at Netto, "Yeah, so do you."

The Neko Virus skidded to a halt and started to run at them again. Netto threw an air shoot at it but it really didn't do much damage and they were forced to retreat. While they ran Laika turned to Netto and asked him, "Is there any reason it has to hate you?"

Netto looked to the side, remembering his first encounter with the pesky virus, "Actually…" he said slowly.

"Turn!" Rockman yelled.

They turned and watched as the momentum of the Neko Virus kept it going until it smashed into the wall and was forced to log out. Netto and Laika exited cross fusion and turned to one another. "Umm…." Netto said slowly.

"Don't say it," Laika hissed.

"I…"

"Don't."

Netto couldn't resist, no matter how stupid he looked. "I told you so," he said quickly.

Laika tackled him to the ground and hovered over him with his ears back, "Do you think this is funny!" he yelled.

Netto was trying really hard not to laugh at Laika's appearance. "No…" he said quietly in an effort to mask the amusement in his voice.

"Calm down," Rockman said. "We've captured the virus and now all we have to do is wait till we get back to sci labs."

"See?" Netto asked. "It'll be gone in a few hours."

Laika pushed himself off Netto and let him get up. "It better be," he hissed as he walked out of the building.

"Geez," Netto muttered, "It was his idea."

"You're not freaking out because…" Rockman pushed.

"Laika… with cat ears? How could **I** freak out," Netto asked with a smirk.

"Point taken," Rockman laughed.

The plane they were in was on automatic pilot and Laika had taken to sleeping in the back of the plane. Netto of course noted this and went over to annoy Laika a little bit. "Hello?" he asked Laika.

"What," Laika said with his eyes still closed.

Netto leaned in until his face was inches from Laika's own. "What are you doing?" he asked in an annoying voice.

Laika growled but still didn't open his eyes. "I'm trying to sleep through this," he said.

Netto grinned, "It was your idea you know," he said.

Laika's eyes snapped open and he looked like he was about to yell at Netto but when he saw how close they were a blush appeared over his cheeks and he found himself at a loss for words.

"Laika?" Netto asked.

"Mind backing off?" Laika told him.

Netto sat up allowing Laika to do the same. "Awww," Netto laughed. "Your ego is hurt," he noted.

"It is not," Laika said.

Netto poked him in the arm, "Yes it is," he said. "You're upset that I was right when I said we could still get infected."

Laika looked annoyed, "So I made a bad decision, so what?"

"Exactly," Netto said and waited silently.

"SO!" Laika said. "So! What if that virus was lethal, what if I put our lives in danger, what if…"

"What if, what if, what if…" Netto mimicked. "Yeah, what if a lot of things Laika. But this is now, and this is no what if. You made the decision and you live with it."

"How are you so calm," Laika asked him.

"I'm savoring the fact that I was right," Netto said simply.

"So that cancels out how embarrassed you are?" Laika asked.

Netto shrugged, "I guess."

Laika eyed his ears and smirked. "Can you even tell?" he asked.

"That I'm infected?" Netto asked. "Not really."

Laika reached over and touched one of his ears, "I can't believe they're real," he muttered.

Netto pulled away from the touch, "Hey," he warned.

"Now who's touchy," Laika snapped.

"I'm touchy!" Netto asked him dubiously.

Laika stood up, "Yeah, when you want to be!" he said.

Netto stood up as well, "And what the hell does that mean?"

"We will hit turbulence in three seconds," a voice chimed over head even though Netto and Laika took no notice.

"It means…" Laika started but then the plane they were on took a sickening lurch that sent Netto flying into Laika and the both of them tumbling onto the ground.

"Ow…" Netto groaned.

Laika looked up to see Netto lying right on top of him. "Mind getting off?" he asked.

Netto pushed against the floor just as another shake rattled the plane. Netto fell back onto Laika who swore when Netto's knee smashed his tail. "Sorry," Netto mumbled and pushed himself up.

Laika sat up and rubbed his head, "What was that?"

"Turbulence," Netto said.

"Netto, are you familiar with the concept of rhetorical questions?" Laika asked.

"What?" Netto asked.

Laika shook his head, "Never mind," he muttered.

Netto looked at Laika and grinned, "You do look good with the cat ears," he laughed.

Laika growled, "I still fail to see the humor," he said dryly.

Netto shrugged, "It'll all be fine in a few hours," he said.

Laika sighed, "But now…" he started.

"Now we're alone, so no one can see us, therefore it's okay," Netto said. "You worry too much," he told Laika. "It's not like someone is going to think any lesser of you because you made a bad decision."

"You don't?" Laika asked.

"I don't care," Netto said with as much emphasis as he could.

"You don't?" Laika asked again.

"Laika… everyone makes mistakes," Netto said. "It's part of life."

Laika gave Netto a half smile, "I guess," he said.

Netto nodded and stood up, "Yeup," he said. "We'll just send the virus and have Rockman and Searchman get the vaccination then we'll make up a mission and cross fuse. No one will have to know."

Laika nodded and stood up himself. "All right," he said.

Netto yawned and sat on the small couch that lined the plane. "Now who's tired?" Laika poked at Netto.

"I can't help it," Netto said.

Laika smiled at sat down next to Netto, "You should stay awake," he said.

Netto crossed his arms, "Not unless you do."

"Someone needs to monitor the plane," Laika pointed out.

Netto nodded, "I know," he said.

Laika sighed, "You can take a nap," he said.

"Are you sure?" Netto asked. "What happened to 5 hours of sleep?"

"I'm beyond help, and you need to study when you get home," he reminded Netto.

Netto opened his mouth but then found he really didn't have anything to say to that so he shrugged and lay down. Within minutes he was asleep and Laika wondered if he had gotten less sleep then him the previous night. After being asleep for ten minutes Netto curled into a ball and wrapped his tail around himself as a cat would. Laika was intrigued and relieved that he hadn't fallen asleep, unsure if Netto would stoop to taking pictures or not.

Finally, curiosity won him over and he reached over to scratch Netto behind the ears, just to see what his reaction would be. At first Netto leaned into the touch, then he apparently woke up because he asked, "Laika, what the hell are you doing?"

Laika pulled back his hand, "Nothing," he said.

Netto snorted into the cushion, "Yeah right."

Laika sighed, "Aren't you supposed to be asleep?" he asked.

"The cushion isn't very comfy," Netto said and sat up while rubbing his eyes. Then he flipped over and lay down on Laika's lap.

"Netto, what the hell are you doing?" Laika asked him, in a mirror to the question he was asked moments before.

"I'm tired and I want to sleep," Netto said matter of factly.

Laika sighed and put his hand on Netto's head, "You're that tired?" he asked.

"High school admission tests are hard," Netto admitted.

"Ah," Laika said and unconsciously resumed the stroking of Netto's ears. "Are you upset you didn't get to take them?" he asked.

"Not really," Netto admitted. "I'll take the make ups next week."

"Oh," Laika said. He noticed what he was doing and pulled his hand away.

"Laika…" Netto said slowly.

"Yeah?" Laika asked.

"Don't stop," Netto asked him.

Laika smiled and continued to stroke Netto's ears. "So it does feel good?" he asked.

Netto smiled, "Yeah," he admitted.

An hour later Netto was awake and in a better mood. Laika however was ready to fall over. "Two cups of coffee, huh?" Netto asked dryly.

Laika frowned, "I think," he said.

"How about you take a nap now, the plane ride is about another hour," he suggested.

Laika sighed, "Well…"

"You don't trust me," Netto said.

"No I do… it's just…" Laika tried to think of an excuse.

"You don't trust me," Netto said again.

Laika sighed, "No, I do," he said and lay down on the couch. "Wake me up when we get there," he said.

Netto watched with a touch of laughter as Laika tried to get comfortable on the hard cushions of the couch. "Having problems?" Netto teased.

"Shut up…" Laika sighed.

Netto walked over and sat down, "You're very crabby."

Laika looked at him, "No!" he said sarcastically.

Netto smirked, "Yes!" he answered in the same sarcastic tone.

Laika sighed and sat up. Netto looked on in amusement as he began to fall asleep while sitting up. It was hilarious to watch until he actually did and fell over onto Netto's shoulder. "Laika?" Netto asked.

Laika continued to sleep.

Netto wondered how Laika would react to waking up like that, then he decided he didn't care. After awhile, Netto couldn't help it either and began to stroke Laika's ears. To his utter amazement Laika did not stir or wake up, in fact he merely sighed and remained asleep.

Netto laughed quietly and watched Laika as he remained asleep on his shoulder. It was amazing, but Netto had never seen Laika asleep before. He was always awake and either working or making sure everyone else was working.

Finally, after getting bored with poking fun at Laika while he was asleep, Netto fell asleep as well, resting his head on Laika's own.

At the end of the plane ride, Rockman and Searchman came into the monitor to find their Net Ops asleep on one another. Netto had curled into Laika's body and his tail was curled around Laika's own. Laika had unconsciously obliged Netto by putting his arms around him and their heads were rested together in a deep sleep.

"Finally," Rockman breathed.

"Hm?" Searchman asked.

"Never mind," Rockman said. "Let's go to Sci Labs and let them sleep."

Searchman actually smiled, "All right," he said.

The two navis took up the program that the Neko Virus was put in and they disappeared from the plane's internet link.

Ten minutes later Laika's eyes slowly opened, and he looked around wondering vaguely, what the hell was going on. When he looked down at Netto his first reaction was to pull away, but then he found that he really didn't want to. Netto felt the small flinch and he woke up as well, "Hm?" he asked.

"Morning, do you know where our navis are?" Laika asked.

Netto yawned, "No idea," he replied.

Laika wondered if he should pull his arms away from Netto but Netto seemed so happy and he didn't want to move. "They'll be back soon," Netto said with a grin.

"I guess…" Laika said doubtfully.

Netto laughed, "You worry too much."

Laika sighed, "I don't mean to."

Netto curled into Laika's arms, "You do," he pointed out.

"Why are you so…" Laika searched for the word.

"So what?" Netto asked.

"Why are you so…" Laika wanted to avoid the word but he couldn't help it, "cuddly?"

Netto blinked, as if it was the first time he realized where he was. "I…" he found himself at a loss for words.

Laika couldn't help it, he had to grin, "I may worry to much, but you're way to unobservant for your own good."

Netto's ears went back, "I am not!" he protested.

"Yes you are," Laika replied. "Why are you still practically sitting in my lap?"

Netto frowned but didn't stand up as Laika thought he would. "I fell asleep," he admitted.

Laika nodded, "I know. I woke up before you did."

Netto stood up and crossed his arms, "Why all the questions?"

"I was merely curious," Laika replied.

Netto opened his mouth to reply but Rockman and Searchman came back into the link perfectly normal. "Mejin-san is going to start up the Dimensional Area," Rockman said.

"Thank god," Laika muttered and pulled out his syncro chip.

The multi hued surface appeared over the area and they both cross fused. When it faded Netto and Laika re-appeared to look quite normal. "Yay!" Netto said happily.

Netto and Laika came out of the plane and looked around, "Well?" Netto asked.

"Well what?" Laika replied.

"What do you want to do?" Netto asked him.

Laika blinked, "Do?"

Netto rolled his eyes, "It's like 3 in the afternoon, don't you want to do something?"

"I guess," Laika said.

Rockman laughed quietly while Netto said, "I know a good restaurant," he said.

"Maha Ichiban?" Laika asked him.

Netto laughed, "What else?"

Laika shook his head, "Fine," he said.

"Yay!" Netto cheered.

Netto and Laika began to walk to the familiar restaurant while talking easily. Rockman and Searchman looked on, Rockman a little more in tune to what was going on then any one else.


End file.
